Sleeping Beauty problem

High school (ages 12+)
Thinking & Learning

Name:

Date:

Step 1 · Read the article

Open the article and read it at the level above. Then answer the questions below in your own words.

https://smallwhale.org/articles/sleeping-beauty-problem

Write what each word means, using the article.

Do not copy the article. Write two things you learned, the way you would explain them to a friend.

Answers below are taken from the article’s stored facts, so they match what the student read.

1. What is the originating philosopher?Adam Elga
2. What is the year of publication?2001
3. Why does the coin matter in the puzzle?The coin decides how many times the person wakes up: if it lands heads, they wake up once; if tails, they wake up twice. We want to know the chance the coin was heads when the person wakes up.
4. What do the 'Halfers' think about the chance of heads?Halfers say the chance of heads should stay 1/2 because the coin is fair and the awakening gives no new information about the coin's result.

Credence: A subjective degree of belief, often expressed as a probability.
Epistemic Agent: A hypothetical being that acts rationally based on its knowledge and beliefs.
Self-Locating Belief: A belief about one's own identity or position in space or time.